The snowstorm considered "potentially deadly" by the authorities practically paralyzed the routine of that region inhabited by some 70 million people, also leading to the cancellation of almost 4,700 flights scheduled for the weekend at different airports in the region.

Big cities including New York and Boston bore the brunt of the storm, which the NWS confirmed intensified into a "bomb cyclone" over the course of Saturday. characterized by rapid strong drops in atmospheric pressure

The hardest-hit parts of New York and Massachusetts received about 24 inches of snow early Saturday afternoon, with more than 95,000 homes without power in that second state.

Snow in Boston matched the one-day record set in 2003 with almost 2 feet of snow according to the NWS.

The NWS had already warned in the northeastern United States that winds could reach between 80 and 120 km/h and make "travel conditions almost impossible."

New York and neighboring New Jersey, as well as Virginia, Maryland and Delaware, have declared an emergency for all or parts of those states.

The "Big Apple" subway network has operated almost normally and, as usual in bad weather, has served as a refuge for thousands of homeless people during the storm. The authorities recommended that residents avoid unnecessary transfers due to the risks derived from inclement weather.

Salt spreaders and snowplows were in full swing in New York, where the famous Central Park was covered in about 19 centimeters of snow and regional train lines were partially paralyzed. In Times Square, the heart of the city, the neon lights of the billboards faded in the frigid air.

But the frigid temperatures didn't intimidate Robert Burck, a street performer known as the "Naked Cowboy." Dressed only in classic American cowboy underwear, hat and boots, he walked through the tourist spot playing his guitar.

On Long Island, a populated island in southeastern New York state, authorities said a woman was found dead in her car by a snowplow operator.

Cold weather spread as far south as the resort state of Florida (southeast), where the NWS warned of "iguanas falling scattered or isolated from trees" as low temperatures temporarily paralyzed the large lizards.

Residents of East Coast towns and cities were urged to avoid all unnecessary travel during a second night of adverse conditions and additional snowfall is expected to be heaviest in New England.

Getting "pretty ugly"

The New York and New Jersey state governments declared a state of emergency and Boston Mayor Michelle Wu declared a snow emergency.

Wu recalled on Twitter to "stay off the roads if possible." "It's going to get pretty ugly," he said in a television interview on Saturday, noting that it was going to be "a historic storm."

For his part, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker said the storm would bring "strong winds and lots of snow" and that the eastern and southeastern coastal areas of the state would be "particularly hard hit." He also said residents were not to move on Sunday "unless absolutely necessary."

Eric Calessandro, a homeowner in the town of Marshfield, near Boston, said he had just lost power but was optimistic his 8,000-watt generator would help him weather the odds.

For its part, Boston's public works department said 900 snowplows were hard at work on the city's streets.

Snowplow operator Mark Burns, of the city's South Shore area, said the snow had turned heavy: "It was supposed to be light and fluffy, but now it's a little wet."

Some 3,500 flights, both domestic and international, were canceled in the United States on Saturday, according to flight tracker FlightAware. Another 1,200 flights scheduled for this Sunday also had to be suspended.

The storm follows a similar storm that blanketed much of eastern North America, from Georgia to Canada, in snow two weeks ago, knocking out power to many homes and disrupting thousands of air connections.

© 2022 AFP